The invention relates to capture of insects so that they may be removed from a building and released alive outdoors.
Many people regard the presence of insects such as spiders inside a building as a nuisance. However, many such people do not wish to kill the insect and would prefer to have a convenient and simple way of disposing of the insect without killing it.
This problem has existed for many years and several attempts have been made at providing an insect capturing device to do the task. One type of such device is based on the principle of using suction to pull insects into a chamber. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,965,608 (Schuman) a hand-held suction device is described. A manually-operated piston pump creates a suction and a trigger-actuated shutter valve controls suction at a nozzle. Check valves may be included for strengthening a stored vacuum.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,631,858 (Kahle) describes a device which operates on a similar principle. The open end of a tube is held near an insect, and a piston is released to cause a vacuum so that the insect is drawn into the chamber.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,817,330 (Fahringer) also describes a device which operates on this principle. This device includes a bellows which creates a vacuum when it is squeezed. A conduit connects the bellows with a trap chamber and a screen is mounted in the conduit.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,537,777 (Geeting) describes a device having a handle with a compression chamber at one end. A soft head is attached at the end of a shaft. The soft head is drawn into a compression chamber so that it wraps around the insect as the head is being compressed.
The devices which operate on this principle appear to be quite complex and so therefore would be expensive and not amenable to widespread use. Another very important aspect is that the device appears to exert considerable force on an insect and parts of the devices such as screens in trap chambers would appear to at least injure the insect, if not kill it.
Another approach is based on the principle of controlling a trap dolor so that an insect is trapped within a chamber. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,324,062 (Schneider) a tubular housing has a movable trap door at either end. One end is shaped for use in corners, and the other end is flat for use against walls etc. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,018 (Reaver) a device is described which comprises a flexible handle having a transparent rigid housing. The housing has a large aperture through which an insect is placed. A pair of parallel channels extend along opposite sides of the compartment aperture and they are arranged to support a front end of a mesh closure member.
These devices would appear to provide a lesser chance of injuring or killing the insect. However, it appears that they are difficult to operate and are complex.
There is therefore a need for an insect capturing device which is simpler to operate so that an insect is captured in a convenient manner and is not injured or killed.
There is also a need for such a device which is of simple and inexpensive construction.
According to the invention, there is provided an insect capturing device comprising a user handle and an insect capturing head, characterised in that,
the head comprises a plurality of bristles, and
the device comprises an actuator comprising means for causing the bristles to move to surround and capture an insect.
Thus, the invention provides for insect capturing in a simple and convenient manner, using components (namely bristles) which have been available for many years.
Preferably, the actuator comprises means for causing the bristles to converge.
In one embodiment, the bristles are arranged in a ring.
Preferably, the head comprises a plurality of tufts of bristles arranged in a ring.
In one embodiment, the bristles are arranged in two or more concentric rings.
Preferably, the bristles of an outer ring are longer than those of an inner ring.
In one embodiment, the rings each comprise a plurality of tufts of bristles, and the tufts of adjacent rings are mounted in a mutually offset configuration.
In another embodiment, the actuator comprises a diaphragm supporting the bristles and means for moving the diaphragm between a convex position at which the bristles (5) diverge and a concave position at which the bristles converge. This is a very simple and effective way of moving bristles to entrap an insect without killing it.
Preferably, said means for moving the diaphragm comprises a rod connected at one end to the diaphragm and at the other end to a trigger mechanism at the handle.
In one embodiment, the trigger mechanism comprises a front fixed handle part (10) and a rear trigger connected to the rod.
Preferably, the actuator further comprises a spring mounted to bias the bristles to a converged state.
In one embodiment, the handle is connected to the head by an elongate rod.